On the nature of snake-poison : its effects on living creatures, and the present aspect of 'treatment of the poisoned' : read at a meeting of the Medical Society of London, Monday, January, 28th, 1884 / by Sir Joseph Fayrer.

  • Fayrer, Sir Joseph, 1824-1907.
Date:
1884
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the nature of snake-poison : its effects on living creatures, and the present aspect of 'treatment of the poisoned' : read at a meeting of the Medical Society of London, Monday, January, 28th, 1884 / by Sir Joseph Fayrer. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    of the daboia (viper) produces complete permanent fluidity (Thanatophidia, p. 4), and, in connection with this, the blood of an animal killed by snake-poison is itself poison- ous, and, if injected into an animal, rapidly produces its poisonous effects. I have transmitted the venom through a series of three animals with fatal results. In 1868 I described the difference of the action of cobra and daboia-venom in the case of two horses bitten by these snakes ( Thanatophidia, p. 79). At pp. 72-73, op. cit., I also pointed out the peculiar action of daboia-venom in causing early convulsions. In some the convulsions are more marked, and, in others, death is preceded by a more de- cided state of lethargy. In the bite of the echis the local symptoms are peculiarly severe, so {Thanatophidia, p. 631) Dr. Wall gives a more complete exposition of the varying effects, and shows them to be greater than I supposed. Snake-poison is a narcotic, and kills by extinguishing in some way (some molecular change) the source of nerve- energy. It is also a blood-poison and an irritant, if applied to mucous and serous surfaces it causes inflammation ; ab- sorption then takes place, and the symptoms of general poisoning are induced. It causes great local disturbance as v/ell as blood-change ; for, if the bitten creature survive long enough, the areolar tissue may inflame, suppurate, and slough. If it enter by a large vein, life may be de- stroyed in a few seconds. It was supposed the more active poisons acted by shock through the nervous system, but the rapidity with which a poison can be distributed through the circulation would account for the most rapid death from snake-bite. The chief effect is on the respiratory apparatus, and death occurs by asphyxia; but the whole voluntary muscular system is also affected, and general paralysis results ; whilst the long continuation of cardiac pulsation after apparent death, proves that it is not due to failure of circulation. The action of snake-poison is discussed at full length in the Proceedings of the Royal Society by Dr. T. L. Brunton and myself (1873-74-75-78). These researches led us to conclude that the action of the poison is : (i) on the cerebral and spinal centres, especially the medulla, inducing general paralysis, especially of respiration ; (2) in some cases, where the poison has been conveyed through a large vem directly to the heart by tetanic arrest of cardiac action, probably owing to action in the cardiac ganglia; (3) by a